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Kory Katseanes Wins the American Prize
from PLC Journal
The American Prize Competitions in the Performing Arts is a prestigious program, and is the most comprehensive series of performing arts contests in the nation. The American Prize receives thousands of submissions each year from performing artists, directors, composers, and ensembles across the nation.1
In 2022, BYU’s own Kory Katseanas was awarded the American Prize in Conducting Orchestras at the College and University Division for the BYU Philharmonic’s performance of Symphony no. 9 by Gustav Mahler on April 9, 2019. This is the first time that anyone at BYU has won such an award.
Katseanas has directed the School of Music orchestral program for over 20 years. He describes Mahler’s last symphony as an “extraordinary masterpiece.” According to Katseanas, “This piece is very rarely attempted by a university orchestra because of its complexity and difficulty, but the orchestra did a remarkable job.”
The orchestra spent a full year studying the piece, listening to recordings, and learning about the history of Mahler and his music. The Philharmonic’s performance on April 9, 2019, was “the culmination of a year-long study by the orchestra to comprehend…the last symphony of Mahler” according to Katseanes.
But Katseanes recognizes that his award is also a recognition of the excellence of the students in the School of Music. “This award really isn’t about me,” said Katseanes. “It’s about the players. If you get nominated for an award like this, you’ve got musicians that are putting you out there.”2 Kory also thanks Jeff Carter and Tony Sales who assisted him in mastering the professional quality audio for submission.
This award recognizes the prestige and talent of the School of Music. Katseanes said, “I am gratified that something for which we labored so long to accomplish was recognized by peers around the country, and that finally, BYU has cracked the listings for the first time and can get a little visibility amongst other prestigious orchestras and universities.”
Click here to view the Philharmonic’s 2019 performance of Mahler’s Symphony no. 9.
